I took a different road and after heading down what turned out to be a dead end, I passed by this. I grew up around trucks like this and I like running across them, even when they look like this. This one looks to be from the early 1960s.

Guido Gardens is a place of refuge, just a couple of miles off I-16 in Metter, which has always been free and open to the public 24/7, 365 days a year. Walk around these three acres and you’re guaranteed to find a sense of inner peace, no matter your faith or belief system. It’s a testament to the vision of Michael Guido, who was better known as “The Sower” through his syndicated newspaper column and radio and television broadcasts, Seeds from the Sower. His wife, Audrey, was responsible for the design of the gardens. At a time when televangelists were plagued with scandal, Michael Guido was seen as a stabilizing voice. He never asked for money and actually gave his message to any and all who would hear it. Guido’s Sower Ministries is still going strong.

Take an hour and walk through the pines and flower beds. Listen to the calming sounds of waterfalls, which seem to be around ever corner.

One of the great features of the gardens is the Chapel in the Gardens, a modern prayer chapel built in 1984 in memory of Evelyn Stillwell. Dr. Norman Vincent Peale came to Metter to assist with the dedication.

As the guest registry in the chapel indicates, people come from all over the country and even the world to this special place of refuge.

The Carpenter’s Shop and the Empty Tomb (not pictured) are representations of important places in Jesus’ life.

You won’t find Aaron on most maps, but this structure is evidence of its past. I will update when I learn more, but I do know that the Aaron family were very involved in the cotton business and likely turpentining. This appears to have been a commissary/general store with a residence on the second floor. Turpentine commissaries were once widespread in this area as the business was dominant here for much of the 20th century.

Nevils Creek is the oldest church in Bulloch County and one of the oldest Primitive Baptist churches in Georgia. It was constituted in 1790. A single headstone is located beside the church: John Neville served in the 2nd South Carolina Regiment during the Revolutionary War. He may have been the founder of the congregation.